Automatic fire-alarm



(No Model.)

J. H. WOOD.

AUTOMATIC PIRE ALARM.

. Patented Sept. 20, 1881.

30 y s ed out definitely in the claims.

UNITED 'STATES i PATENT OFFICE.l

JOSEPH H. WOOD, OFPITTSFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- HALF TO ALBERT H. DAINTY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

AUTOMATIC FIRE-ALARM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 247,457, dated September 20, 1881.

Application filed September 4, 1880.l (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: y

Bre `it known that I, J osEPHH. Woon, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pitts'- ield, in the county of Berkshire and State of lVIassachusetts,4 have invented certain new and vuseful Improvements in Automatic `Fire- Alarms,which are fully described in the following specification, reference' being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l represents a plan view of an alarm mechanism embodying my improvements; Fig. 2, a longitudinal section taken on the linea'x, Fig. l; Fig. 3, an'eleyation of the loose ratchet-wheel detached; and Fig. 4, a detailed elevation, showingthetrain of fan-gearing,

My invention relates to mechanism operat ing automatically when released to strikean alarinupon ordinary bells or gongs, being especially adapted for introduction .in the belfries of churches and otherY buildings' already t. provided with bells.

. The invention consists in aseries of ham-` mers combined with operating devices, whereby successive and rapid strokes of thehammer are produced successively upon the bell or gong.

l The mechanism means of which I carry out myinvention will. be hereinafter more specially described, and the improvements which it is desired to secure by Letters Patent point- In the drawings, Arepresents a suitable supporting-frame, which may be made of-metal or other suitable material, and is locked and se` cured in position near the vbell or gong B.

Armsy C, in aseries, are mounted loosely on the shaft D, at the end of the arm next to the bell. These frames project rearward behind the shaft in nearly a horizontal direction, and are turned up at their ends slightly to make a tappet, c, in which, preferably, an anti-friction roller, c', is mounted.- Upon the shaftthe arms are enlarged and provided with the circularslot c2, concentric with the supporting- Shafti l The hammers E are mounted on the upper ends of arms e, the lower endsof which are loosely mounted on the shaft D, to permitthe vibration of the hammers. rOne of these hammer-arms is placed alongside each of the arms C, to'which it is secured by means of the bolt e', passing through the circularslot c2 to the corresponding hammer-arm, and secured-by a nut, e2, turned on one end,l thereby clamping the hammer-arm to the arm C, and at the same time permitting the adjustment of the hammer-arm with reference to the arm C to regui ter opposite to its corresponding hammer-arm.

These collars are also looseou the 'shaft D. From them the springs extend downward to some suitable distancein the lower part of the front end of the frame. In the drawings they are shown passed behind a shaft or rod, F', which is a cheap and efficient way of securing the springs.

The vibrating arms C, with their collars, are held in proper position on their supportingshaft by means of adjustable collars d, set at any desiredvpoint on the shaft by means of fastening-screws d.

The arms C, the hammers, and springs, are adjusted so that when at rest the springs will hold the hammers forward, so as to just touch, or nearly touch, the bellor gong. Obviously, whenever the rear ends of the arms C are depressed the hammers will be vibrated backward against the tension of the springs, which will then suddenly throw the hammers forward again as soon as the arms .are-releasecL-and cause them to strike the bell. To produce this vibration of the operating-arms C, I attach a series of cams, H, to a shaft, h, arranged in suitable bearings in the supporting-frame, just above the tappets c. These cams are shaped, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, so that when brought in contact with their respective tappets they will depress the rear ends of the arms C, and then will suddenly leave them,

and the cams are arranged to come in working- Contact with the anti-friction rollers when the latter are used. The cams are also arranged on the shaft so as to operate successively or irregularly upon their respective arms, thereby vibrating the hammers in regular succession to make strokes, one after the other. Obviously, therefore, a series of rapid strokes will be made upon the bell, their rapidity being governed by the number of hammers and the speed at which the camshaft is revolved. To revolve this shaft a large gear-wheel, l, is attached to a shaft, t', mounted at the rear of the frame, on which a drum, J, is xed. The wheel I en gages with apinion, K, loose on the cam-shaft, but provided with a spring-pawl, k, which is arranged to engage with a ratchet, it', on the cam-shaft, these parts being constructed and arranged so that the pawl will engage with the ratchet and y turn the shaft forward in the proper direction to operate the hammers; but the pinion may be turned backward without rotating Jthe shaft.

A weight, L, `is fastened to a cord, 7, which is wound on the drum J in a proper direction to turn the shaft and gear-wheel I in the proper direction to rotate the cam-shaft by the pull on the cord. Obviously,when this mechanism is released, or left free to the influence of the weight, the cam-shaft will be rotated more or less rapidly, thereby vibrating the hammers to produce a series of rapid strokes upon the bell to give an alarm; but, 0f course, as this mechanism is to be operated only when occasion requires, it is necessary to provide some stop device to prevent its action under ordinary circumstances. This I effect by means of a spring lever or pawl, M, one end of which is arranged to engage with a stop-cam, N, on a shaft, a, below the cam-shaft. This shaft is also provided with a pinion, n', which engages with a gear-wheel, O, on a shaft, o, arranged between the shaft n and the cam-shaft, and also provided with a pinion, o', which engages with a gear-wheel, P, on the end of the cam-shaft. The springlever is caused to engage with the cam-stop by means of a spring, m, the tension of which operates to hold the inner end of the lever in contact with the cam, and, obviously, this will prevent the forward rotation of the shaft on which the cam is tiXed by the engagement of the lever with the stop, and, through this stopping of the shaft a, eft'ectually stop the rotation of the main cam-shaft, which is connected by gearing therewith; but when the stop-lever is released from engagement with the stop-cam the mechanism will instantly be set in operation by the effect of the weigh t.

To release the stop-lever, a cord, m', is fastcned to the outer end of thelever, and extended down from the belf'ry to any place in the building desired, where it may be kept under lock and key, so as to be accessible only to those persons entrusted with a key.

A fan, Q, is Xed on the shaft n, outside of the supporting-frame, which serves to regulate or balance the operation of the machine.

In the drawings three hammers are shown and three cams, which are set on thirds, so that at each revolution of thc cam-shaft each hammer will make a single stroke, in all three strokes for each revolution of the shaft. This arrangement is, however, merely illustrative, for the principle of strokes may be regulated at will, according tothe number of hammers and cams.

The relative size of the driving-gear and pinion on the cam-shaft is intended to be such that alarms may be given a number of times before the weight has run down. lWhen, however, the weight has reached its limit the cord may be wound up by a crank applied to the drum-shaft, the loose pinion on the camshaft permitting this backward revolution of the main gear-wheel.

Obviously, a spring motor may be substituted for the weight, and other changes maybe made in the particular mechanism herein shown and described, without modifying the principle of my invention. The hammer-arms, for instance, maybe fastened directly to thc operatiugarm s, instead of being attached to the shaft, and the retractin g-s prin gs may be arranged differently, and the stop mechanism differently constructed and arranged; so that I do not limit myselfto the precise construction and arrangement of the special devices as described above.

This alarm mechanism is intended for application where bells are usually rung by hand to give alarms of lire, 85e., and it may be read ily applied in belfries already constructed and provided withbells; or, ifdesired, foranyspecial purpose, a structure with suitable gong or bell maybe erected at anypoint and my alarm mechanism put in. The alarm will, of course, he sounded as long as the attendant holds away the stop-lever, and the cord from the stop-lever may be run through a watch-tower', en gine-house, or any other convenient place.

By applying the mechanism to bells dilferently tuned in different parts of a town the location of a fire may be indicated to some eX- tent, though this apparatus is not designed in this respect to take the place of the electric lire alarm.

The force of the stroke of the hammers may be regulated to a great degree of nicety by adjusting the hammers with reference to the bell so that the springs will cause them to just strike the bell, or to strike with full force.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a fire alarm, a series of vibrating bellhammers, in combination with a series of independent vibrating arms, to which the hammer-arms are Iadjustably attached, a series of cams mounted on a rotary shaft and arranged to act upon the vibrating arms, and a series of springs connected to the vibrating arms and arranged to operate both to throw the hammers forward against the bell and to retract them after the blow is struck, substantially as described.

2. In a fre-alarm, a series of vibrating bell IOO IIO

IZO

hammers, in combination with a series of independent vibrating arms, to which the hammer-arms are adjustably attached, a series of cams mounted on a rotary shaft and arranged 5 to act upon the vibrating arms, a series of springs connected to the vibrating arms and `arranged to operate both to throw the hammers forward against the bell and to retract them after the blowis struck, and a stop mech- Io anismwhereby the motor may be stopped and released at will, and a releasing-cord connected to the stop mechanism and extending outside the bell-tower, so that it may be reached from JOSEPH H. WOOD.

Witnesses:

J oHN F. VAN DEUsEN, E. KIRBY MCLAUGHLIN. 

